Known in ancient China as the ‘Examining Foot Method’ and in ancient Japan as ‘Observation of Feet and the Treatment of Foot Nerves’, modern day reflexology was first researched in the west by Dr William Fitzgerald, an American Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) specialist in 1916..

Initially he used pressure points in the hands to anaesthetise areas of the face for his procedures, but then found that other areas of the body also benefitted from this hand pressure.

As word of this new treatment spread, many doctors became interested, among them Dr Joe Shelby Riley.  He and Eunice Ingham, a physiotherapist, worked together to draw up a chart of the reflex areas of the feet.  Dr Riley also developed charts of the hands, face and ears.

Eunice Ingham developed the so-called ‘compression massage’ method of working on the reflex points and published her first book on the subject in 1938. Her methods are still used worldwide by many reflexologists today.

Other forms of reflexology have their roots in Asia. In Korea, a map of the body on the hands is used by therapists practicing Koryo Hand Therapy. In Vietnam maps of the body on the face were used in the development of a therapy called Dien Cham or Facial Reflexology.

The map of the body on the ear was discovered by Dr Paul Nogier, a French physician, in 1957. His map, confirmed by a study of 2000 patients in China, is recognised by the World Health Organisation.

Today reflexology’s rich history forms the basis of an established complementary therapy with set standards of training and practice in many countries. Reflexology is used in many settings – private clinics, multi-therapy clinics, in oncology, midwifery and palliative care.